Everyone’s heard of the bored ape yacht club by now - the NFT project taking the world
by storm.
The collection is made up of over 10,000 unique NFT art pieces featuring the signature ape
avatars.
Some apes have more uncommon characteristics than others, making them more rare and thus
more valuable.
But, there’s much more to the Bored Ape Yacht Club than meets the eye.
From a surprising origin story, to secret clubs and celebrity buyers, we’ve dug up
some of the untold secrets of the Bored ape yacht club.
Although this was one of the first NFT projects to take over the headlines, it certainly won’t
be the last, so stay tuned to learn what these NFTs have been hiding, and what it could mean
for future projects.
A Surprising Origin Story Almost a decade ago, two friends attending
the same university were knocking back beers and discussing their favorite authors like
David Foster Wallace, Hemingway, and Wittgenstein when they proposed something that would eventually
become a global sensation.
One of these men who goes by the alias Gargamel already had an MFA, while his buddy, who has
chosen the moniker Gordon Goner, was enrolled in an MFA program but dropped out because
of health issues.
In 2017 these two friends bought some crypto.
For the next couple of years they merely watched and waited as they figured out how they wanted
to get involved with the blossoming industry.
Gargamel worked as an editor and writer while Goner worked part-time as a day-trader.
During this time, they pondered how they could get more involved with the crypto game, but
they struggled to figure out how to get their feet in the door.
Gargemel wasn't the best of investors, and Goner wasn't that great of a trader.
They were both creative types, so how could they expect to find success as blockchain
programmers?
Then along came NFTS, and everything changed as they were stricken with creative inspiration.
That's when they developed the characters, world, and backstory that would eventually
evolve into the Bored Ape Yacht Club.
With the help of two of their friends who go by the nicknames No Sass and Emperor Tomato
Ketchup, they managed to sell over $2 million worth of Ape NFTs at $200 a piece.
No two images are alike, and each NFT was randomly generated incorporating over 170
possible traits, including facial expressions, headgear, clothing, and other accessories.
Today, paying $200 for one of these images sounds like an absolute bargain.
In August of 2021, NBA star player Steph Curry bought an ape for a mind-blowing $180,000,
and just months later in October an Ape sold for a record-breaking $3.4 million.
The Bored Ape NFTs are now one of the most prized and coveted collections in the world
of crypto.
Gargemel and Goner have become overnight success stories proving the power of an authentic
backstory.
The New Yorker even recently penned a 2,500 word profile piece noting that the Ape Avatars
are taking the internet by storm.
That’s certainly not bad for a pair of previously unsuccessful crypto investors.
A Play-To-Earn NFT Game Is Coming
Now, Bored Ape Yacht Club has become one of the best known and most valuable NFT projects
in the world.
Adidas recently signed the brand, and dozens of celebrities have gotten in on the action.
And next, the Apes are getting their very own play-to-earn NFT Game.
In December, Yuga Labs announced that they are developing an NFT game in conjunction
with Animoca Brands, the publisher of the highly-popular metaverse game, The Sandbox.
Some of the other projects that Animoca has invested in include NBA Top Shot and Axie
Infinity.
The Bored Ape NFT game is expected to go live sometime during the second quarter of 2022,
but as of right now, no specifics have been unveiled other than the fact that the game
will feature a play-to-earn model and will make use of the Bored Ape NFTs that have already
proven to be a success with crypto enthusiasts.
Animoca has also released one teaser image promoting the game.
It teases a robotic hand holding an electrified banana emblazoned with the Bored Ape Yacht
Club logo.
While they have yet to announce which blockchain platform the game will make use of, it's likely
that it will be the Ethereum blockchain considering the fact that's what the Bored Ape NFTs are
already minted on.
Secret Bored Ape Chats Exist
Recently a Twitter user that goes by the handle @not_Katrina, expressed their frustration
with the number of secret Bored Ape chats that are out there on the web.
The user, who has been confirmed to be a Bored Ape NFT owner, claims that they have to cross-post
the same content on numerous different chats in order to share their insights.
The tweet that they made about this issue has since sparked many discussions from both
owners of the popular NFTs and non-owners alike.
Many of these discussions featured comments by people expressing their gripes about the
existence of such chats, while others appeared to be from eager people trying to get invited
to the groups.
A few Bored Ape owners, however, mentioned that they were completely unaware that such
clandestine communities even were a thing.
Some argue that owning a bored ape NFT shouldn’t give you access to these exclusive chats.
On the other hand, NFT collectors who can afford to pay millions for one of the NFTs
may want to flex their ownership with some perks just like that.
As alluring as these secretive chats might be, it's important to be aware that there
are numerous NFT scammers out there on the web that are looking for every chance they
can get to swindle others.
Secretive chats like these create an atmosphere where it's easy to be caught off guard.
So, if you're on Discord or a similar service looking to find these secret chats, it's good
to be aware of just how rampant these kinds of scams are these days.
Eminem Is A Proud Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT Owner
Just a few days ago, the rapper Eminem purchased Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT #9055 on the Opensea
Platform.
The selling price was $452,000.
The account used to purchase the NFT, Shady_Holdings, also has purchased several Lil Baby Doodles
X NFTs, Superlative Apes #3880 and a stencil image of himself by stencil art creator Ditaggdogg.
But his collection doesn’t stop there - Eminem also owns NFTs Shaq Gives Back #4077, SABC
#2615, and Adult Fantasy Sub-Dude 130/151.
As of right now, in total, Eminem owns 166 NFT assets from 32 collections.
However, his Bored Ape is the most valuable in his collection, and shows just how important
these NFTs have become to the digital art collector.
Other Celebrities Ape In Eminem isn’t the only celebrity getting
in on the action with bored apes.
Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon recently purchased the Bored Ape NFT #599.
He paid 46.6 ETH using the crypto app Moonpay.
Post Malone shelled out over $700,000 for 2 Bored Ape NFTs, including #961, which features
zombie fur and a cowboy hat, and has since been made his profile picture on Twitter.
Snoop Dogg is the proud owner of Bored Ape #7723, which features leopard print fur and
an army helmet.
The rapper and media tycoon also owns several highly valuable CryptoPunks, XCOPY, and Artblocks
NFTs.
Von Miller, the LA Rams Linebacker, paid 25 ETH for his Bored Ape NFT number 4733, which
has notable traits that include white fur, robot eyes, and a cowboy hat.
He also owns Bored Ape #1432, which was given to him as a gift from fellow-NFT athlete Dez
Bryant.
A few other stars who own Bored Apes include rapper Lil Baby, production DJ duo The Chainsmokers,
former Disney TV star Drake Bell, and EDM Artist Steve Aoki, all throwing some serious
weight behind the legacy of the bored ape yacht club.
Future Plans For The Bored Ape Yacht Club
The Bored Ape Yacht Club is steadily expanding outside of the world of NFTs and is becoming
an offchain brand, which means that you’ll start finding it in the physical space too.
In addition to the NFT game coming later this year, Adidas has signed a contract with the
company to integrate the Bored Apes into fashion.
Adidas has big plans to develop a line of streetwear that incorporates the now-iconic
ape's images.
They also plan on bringing this branding and several other NFT brands to the metaverse.
Even stranger though, is what people are starting to do with their apes on their own dime.
By owning a Bored Ape NFT, you get full commercial rights to do whatever you please with it.
One Bored Ape owner recently set up a Twitter account for his beloved ape in which he created
an elaborate backstory, transforming it into a character named Jenkins who works as a valet
for the Yacht Club.
In September, Jenkins was signed to a real-world agency, and he's now getting his own Biography,
co-written by New York Times best-selling author Neil Strauss.
Universal Music has also gotten involved in the past few months, signing a virtual band
consisting of one mutant ape and three bored apes.
At this point, there really is no dismissing NFTs.
You might think that they are a bit ridiculous or even destructive to the environment due
to the large amount of energy required to sustain the blockchain, but don't expect the
Bored Apes or many other NFTs to go anywhere anytime soon, because it sure looks as if
they are here to stay.
If you're excited about the upcoming Bored Ape play-to-earn game and want to keep yourself
busy until it launches later this year, check out this video covering a few other free-to-play
NFT games that can start making you money today.
We’ll see you in the next video.